Making hair gel, I hate weeds, and Friday!

Thank you, thank you, for coming by this week. We've had our ups and downs, and it hasn't been all too exciting, but, we finally made it to Friday! Isn't it wonderful?

Our spillway has finally trickled to a stop as the lake drops. We still have no beach, and we have a chance of rain tomorrow. No lake, no SUP, no sun. Boo. First world probs.

There is a BBQ competition going on downtown tonight/tomorrow. I may stop by to hang out for a bit, but it's a total man, meat, fire type of situation. I'll let you know how the judging goes. I am a bit biased this year, so you may not get a fair answer from me.

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Curly Girl

I get lots of questions about my hair, mainly, how I get my curls to look so nice. My questions for anyone always start with: Do you use shampoo? Do you blow dry? Do you brush or comb? If you answer yes to any of these, you're doing it wrong. I'm not saying you don't know what you're doing, but if you have hair like MINE, if it behaves like MINE, and if you want to try to make it look like MINE, then you're doing it wrong. I don't do any of those things.

For the last 3 or 4 years I was using baking soda to wash, and vinegar to rinse/condition. Due to my change in relationship status back then, I could get away with that. Now, due to my status change again this year, I had to adjust. Sigh, having to not smell like a dirty hippie...who have I become?

I went back to using Devacurl No-poo and One Condition. It has a nice lemongrass scent. Very creamy, and very nourishing. Some days I'll cleanse and condition, some days I condition only. 

I haven't used a blow dryer in years, even when I have straightened my hair. I haven't used my flat iron in quite a while either. I go through phases you know. I also don't own a brush, or a comb. Well, I may own some, but they are in the 'guest stuff' box.

No-poo, One Condition, plop on head during shower, rinse, t-shirt dry (towels create frizz), gel, and bobby pin up. I lay my hair out while I sleep if it's wet when I go to bed. In a hurry, I'll lay on my ottoman in front of the big air vent in the living room, or sit in the truck with the vents on me on high-speed.

Now, on to the gel. I make my own. I have been doing this since I lived on 82nd St West, so that was in....2008? My measurements are all eyeballed, so I'm guestimating in this tutorial. You have to make it a lot to get good at it, but usually even the first couple batches you make are usable. It's just gel, don't worry about it too much.

I use golden flax seeds only. Purchased at my local health food store. I have seen them in bulk at the grocery store in other, bigger towns. I've tried raw, natural, and some other kinds, but they seem to leave my hair drier, or crunchier. Try a few, see what works for you.


~1/4 cup whole golden flax seeds added to about 1 1/3 - 1 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan
~Stir seeds into water once (? or a few times to keep from sticking) while heating over medium heat. I have a glass top stove and set it on 4 on the small burner.
~Heat until you have white foam (picture 4) It usually only takes 5-7 minutes.
~Remove from heat and set at an angle so seeds will sink. This makes straining the gel easier. I set mine on a curved spoon rest with a hot pad under it for extra lift, and traction (just like my hair, lol).
~Leave it for about 5 minutes. (picture 6 shows the gel after a few mins. seeds under gel layer)
~Pour slowly into strainer over bowl, getting as much free gel as possible. Pour some seeds/gel into strainer and leave until no gel drips off.

I throw my used seeds away. I've read that some people boil them again for another batch, or put them in shakes. I didn't have much luck with reusing the seeds for gel, and I put dry, unused seeds in my shake or yogurt.

Store the gel in an airtight bowl or bottle in the refrigerator. I add lavender essential oil for scent, or lemongrass. It has been said that you can store it up to 2 weeks, but this amount only lasts me 2 days, so I don't know how true that is.

I lightly squeeze the gel into my wet hair after cleansing, creating a big, slippery, goopy mess. When gelling in the mornings on dry hair, I add it to the outer layer, the ends, the underneath...whatever it needs. It flakes a little when I have added too much over too many days, but I seem to be the only one that notices.

My hair ends up with fat, dense curls. More like little wiggly snakes, but some ringlets. Not much 'frizz', and not much puff. I actually complain more about a lack of body in my hair. That's not common with curly girls.

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 Co-garden update!!

Weeding co-garden last night was back breaking. The ground is dry and hard. I have to water the weeds before I can pull them, or else they just break off at ground level. My nails look disgusting, I have a ka-gillion mosquito bites, and my back is soooooo in need of a massage. (ahem...)

I got to try out my new rain boots though. Very soft rubber, and comfy, comfy. I ordered them from Target on sale.









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What are your weekend plans?

Did you run this week?

Are you a dirty hippie too?




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